Currently, there are few products which will process through high speed continuous laser printers, such as the IBM 3800. Of the companies addressing this market segment currently known to applicant, none have a label construction which will process through a high speed laser printer in long, continuous runs. In the case of the IBM 3800 printer, the manufacturer specifies the caliper products to be in the 0.0022 inch to 0.003 inch range. Most acceptable label product constructions exceed this specification, however, and when fed through the printer, absorb a significant amount of heat from the toner fusing station, causing the printer to shut down. In addition, the printer manufacturer does not recommend processing pressure sensitive labels through the above noted printer, not only due to the thickness of the two-ply construction, but also because of possible adhesive contamination of the printer.
It is a principal object of this invention to provide a pressure sensitive label construction which can be processed through a high speed laser printer without absorbing excessive heat from the unit's toner fusing system, and without adhesive contamination of the printer.
In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the invention, a pressure sensitive label form is provided which includes a release coated liner supporting a face sheet having a adhesive layer on its lower surface and a toner receptive coating on its upper surface. The face sheet, which is adhesively attached to the release coated liner, is die cut into individual labels.
The release coated liner is larger in the width dimension than the face sheet, extending outwardly away from either side of the face sheet. Since the adhesive on the face sheet is located away from the edges of the liner, adhesive contamination of the printer by the form product is not likely. It is a further optional feature of the invention to include a label strip along one or both of the marginal edges of the liner (but inside the tractor feed holes) to allow a sense mark to be placed in the margin for registration control.
Thus, in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the invention, there is provided a pressure sensitive label form construction comprising a base sheet having length and width dimensions and an upper surface coated with a release composition; and a label face sheet removably adhesively secured to the upper surface of the base sheet; wherein the label sheet has a width dimension less than the width dimension of the base sheet.
In another aspect, the invention relates to a pressure sensitive label form construction suitable for processing through a laser printer comprising a base sheet having length and width dimensions and an upper surface coated with a release composition; and a label face sheet removably adhesively secured to the upper surface of the base sheet, the label face sheet having an adhesive applied to a lower surface thereof, and a toner-receptive coating applied to an upper surface thereof, and the label face sheet being die cut into a plurality of side-by-side labels; wherein the label face sheet has a width dimension less than the width dimension of the base sheet, such that adhesive contamination of the printer is avoided.
Additional objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the detailed description which follows.